Mayor Adrian Schrinner says environmental protesters ‘worse than CFMEU’

A Brisbane MP has slammed Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk and her polce minister, accusing them of peddling lies about environmental activists and winding back ‘basic civil liberties’. Picture: Jess Millward/Twitter

A BRISBANE-BASED MP has slammed Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk and her police minister, accusing them of peddling lies and returning Queensland to the Joh era.

Standing out the front of State Parliament after a protest through the CBD, Maiwar MP Michael Berkman also slammed Lord Mayor Adrian Schrinner’s comments this morning branding protests as extremists as ‘disgusting’.

“It’s absolute garbage, we are regular protesters,” Mr Berkman said. “I think there’s a real extremism creeping into the government and opposition on this.”

He said new laws would unwind the progress made after the end of the Joh era.

“I think its indicative at just how upset people are at the proposal that the Labor government will become LNP lite and start winding back really basic civil liberties like the right to protest,” Mr Berkman said.

Protesters against Palaszczuk's new anti-protest laws are marching on Parliament House @couriermail pic.twitter.com/biRolat4os

— Thomas Morgan (@thomasmorgan22) August 27, 2019

Meanwhile, Greens councillor for West End Jonathon Sri, who led this morning’s protest of more than 100 people compared the plight of Brisbane’s protesters with those of Hong Kong.

Cr Sri said a suggestion to limit protests to outside of peak hour was chilling.

“I think the suggestion that the government should decide when protest and what they should get to protest about is utterly ridiculous,” he said.

“It needs to be condemned in the strongest possible terms.”

“We’ve seen what happens in places like Hong Kong, we’ve know what happens when dictators get ahead of themselves,” he said.

Cr Sri said the law was on their side, referring to yesterday’s ruling in the Magistrates Court, and said the Lord Mayor’s comments were “questioning the legitimacy” of the legal system.

During this morning’s protest Cr Sri led the procession with a series of chants, including “we’ll stop the disruption when you stop the corruption”.

He also accusing the political class of being “white collar criminals” and “the real extremists”.

The group of more than 100 protesters also chanted:

“Palaszczuk you’ve crossed the line, protesting is not a crime”.

Protesters block the intersections of Margaret and Queen streets in the Brisbane CBD. Picture: 7 News Brisbane

Earlier today, Brisbane’s Lord Mayor described protesters likely to disrupt traffic on Brisbane’s city streets this morning as worse than the CFMEU.

It comes after a last-ditch effort by Brisbane City Council through the courts to stop one of its councillors — Cr Jonathan Sri — from disrupting peak hour traffic was sunk by a Brisbane magistrate.

#BREAKING: Activists in Brisbane are taking to the streets in the latest protest set to cause chaos for city workers. #9News pic.twitter.com/7pc9ogKD2s

— Nine News Queensland (@9NewsQueensland) August 27, 2019

Today’s protests, expected to kick off at around 8am, are in relation to new laws by the Palaszczuk Government against devices such as so-called Sleeping Dragons, which inhibit the ability for police to remove protesters stuck to roadways or mining equipment.

Speaking to ABC Radio this morning, Lord Mayor Adrian Schrinner described environmental protesters as ‘extremists’ who held ‘fringe views’.

Brisbane city councillor Jonathan Sri leaves the Magistrates Court in Brisbane yesterday. Sri has successfully fought a ban on an environmental protest issued by Lord Mayor Adrian Schrinner. Picture: AAP Image/Dan Peled.

“Even the CMFEU takes a more reasonable approach than these extremists,” Cr Schrinner said.

“The premier is using exactly this same language, and I think the general public has become really fed up with this.”

When questioned by the hosts as to his language, Cr Schrinner said these protesters weren’t representative of mainstream views.

“These aren’t the only people who care about the environment, we all care about the environment,” Cr Schrinner said. “These are right on the fringe views.”

However, a group calling themselves the Grey Power Climate Protectors have rejected the mayor’s claims.

Convenor Miree LeRoy said they were ordinary citzens opposed to the opening of more thermal coal mines for the sake of future generations.

“As grandparents and older Queenslanders we’ve all noticed changes in the climate in our own lifetimes. We’re appalled that governments are literally burning our children’s future,” Ms LeRoy said.

“David Attenborough said recently us baby boomers won’t see the worst effects of climate change. But our kids and grandkids are going to cop it unless governments respond to the true emergency we face.”

“We’re opposed to the Adani mine because we’re alarmed about the world we are leaving future generations. Like those in Extinction Rebellion, members of Grey Power will continue their campaign of peaceful, sometimes disruptive, opposition to governments who seem blind to public opinion.”

Brisbane Lord Mayor Adrian Schrinner described the protesters as ‘worse than the CFMEU’. Picture: AAP Image/Dan Peled.